The Des Moines Register
Sunset skating
The U.S. figure skating team for the 2026 Winter Olympics may already be set, but skaters can still hit the ice for fun at Brenton Skating Plaza in Des Moines. Regular hours are: Monday–Thursday: 5 p.m – 9 p.m. Fridays: 5 p.m. – 11 p.m. h Saturdays:...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Reynolds talks Iowa agenda for 2026
Gov. Kim Reynolds is defending her proposal to limit local governments’ revenue growth to 2% annually as she looks to cut property taxes for Iowans. h Reynolds, a Republican, used her Condition of the State address to pitch a property tax cut that her...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Reynolds lists last set of priorities for Iowa
Gov. Kim Reynolds proposed a $3 billion property tax cut for Iowans, new spending on cancer prevention and stricter penalties for undocumented immigrants who commit crimes in her annual address to lawmakers. The Condition of the State address, which...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Iowa duo on the road to musical success
The first time Kathryn Severing Fox took the stage at the Grand Ole Opry, Nashville’s hallowed home of live music, she didn’t know where to stand. “Walking up on the stage, I didn’t even go to the right part of the stage initially,” she laughs. “I...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Protests spread after fatal shooting by ICE
The city of Minneapolis is reeling in the aftermath of the fatal shooting of a woman by an immigration agent, as federal and local authorities clash over the latest violence in President Donald Trump’s nationwide immigration crackdown. Minnesota...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Where commerce meets community
On a Wednesday afternoon in December, Arina Soda and her husband, Julio Moreno, greeted a family heading for the shelves that took over the entrance of their Des Moines hair salon and tattoo shop. Soda said they could grab any of the items — canned...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Milk & Honey builds community bonds
This is the first in an occasional series that looks at farm-to-table dining in Iowa. HARLAN, Iowa – In a former Ford dealership in Harlan, Iowa, Milk & Honey is rewriting the farm-to-table playbook for rural America. Owned by farmers Daniel Rosmann...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
‘I FEEL LIKE I HAVE A RESPONSIBILITY’
Bishop Tammy Harris got the call about her cancer diagnosis in 2023 while driving to Chicago for her exhusband’s funeral. It was stage 1 breast cancer, which meant doctors caught it early but she would need surgery to remove the malignant tumor. h The...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
U.S. captures Venezuelan President Maduro
Get the latest at usatoday.com. And find more coverage in the Nation & World Extra section, a subscriber-only feature in your eNewspaper.
Read Full Story (Page 1)
West Des Moines still trails Ankeny after partial census
West Des Moines has grown by more than 5,200 people since 2020, according to a special partial census – a surge expected to bring in millions of dollars more in tax revenue through 2030. But the surge wasn’t enough to overtake Ankeny as the metro’s...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
‘HIDING IN PLAIN SIGHT’
Chris Jones grew up in Ankeny — back when it was a quiet town of no more than 6,000 people and before it became the largest suburb in the Des Moines metro. For Jones, that meant time spent outdoors, from collecting butterflies to watching wildlife, and...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Bowl-game result will define Iowa football’s season
TAMPA, Florida — In the scope of Iowa’s 2025 football season, it’s not a stretch to say this Dec. 31 ReliaQuest Bowl result against 14th-ranked Vanderbilt means everything. Sure, the value placed on bowl games has undoubtedly diminished...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Big changes ahead for Iowa’s SNAP program
Marc Craig says he wouldn’t be able to get by without the $298 he receives each month for food assistance. Craig, who lives in the Des Moines area, is homeless and sleeps in his car. He’s been looking for a job for months, but hasn’t been able to find...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Tattoos, love, hemp together at Iris Aisle
It’s called Iris Aisle, and this bucolic patch of rural Iowa somehow escaped growing corn and soybeans to become a truly unique business enterprise. This, however, is a story about the unique dreams of its artistic owners. Earl Ramey, 55, is a tattoo...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
5 charged for spray painting slurs on historic Winterset Clark Tower
Five people, including four juveniles, are being charged with criminal mischief after vandalizing Clark Tower in Winterset in November. Phone numbers, racial slurs, names and inappropriate drawings were graffitied on the three levels of Clark Tower, a...
Read Full Story (Page 2)
‘You’re never alone in this journey’
Escucha Mi Voz, an Iowa-based, immigrant-led organization, is like “a huge family,” said member Elida Contreras. “And we’re there for each other,” Contreras, 22, said. Contreras is one of about 800 members of Escucha Mi Voz, which helps connect...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Townships carry Iowa’s past into a more demanding future
Long before city councils and county boards shaped Iowa politics, townships formed the state’s first experiment in local governance. Largely unnoticed, this grassroots system still quietly operates even as townships struggle to keep up with funding and...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Developer boosts community spirit
People driving past what used to serve as the city hall for the long-defunct municipality of North Des Moines see a building propped up by support beams and plywood-covered windows. But real estate developer Kuuku Saah sees a building that hosted...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Concerns over one city employee in tiny Pisgah
Taxpayers sometimes express concern when people who are supposed to be public servants work two different jobs at once. But in Pisgah, a hamlet of 1 square mile and fewer than 250 people nestled in the Loess Hills of southwest Iowa, that concern’s...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
A lifetime in service for retiring fire chief
Ask Des Moines Fire Chief John TeKippe about defining moments from his three decades as a firefighter and the memories are often unglamorous, unrecognized — and sometimes unconventional. He thinks about the time he got a call about a Canadian goose...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Millions are facing tough insurance choices for ’26
NEW YORK – Americans facing skyrocketing health insurance premiums under the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, could still get a break from expanded government subsidies in 2026 through retroactive legislation and possibly a special...
Read Full Story (Page 2)
Will treetops glisten?
Dreaming of a white Christmas? As much as the idyllic scene may be what comes to mind around the holiday season (particularly this year), the odds of actually having a white Christmas in Des Moines and the surrounding area are lower than you might...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Coming home
The bodies of two fallen Iowa National Guard soldiers and a civilian interpreter have arrived back to U.S. soil after they were killed this weekend in an attack in Syria. President Donald Trump helped escort the bodies of Sgt. William Nathaniel “Nate”...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
WINTER WOES
Keeping warm this winter will cost Iowans and others in the Midwest as much as 20% more than last year, given not just the frigid weather but an expected spike in natural gas and electricity costs, projections from a national group says. Just how much...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Guard identifies Iowa soldiers killed in Syria
The Iowa National Guard has released the names of the two soldiers killed in an apparent ISIS attack in Syria: Sgt. William Nathaniel Howard, 29, of Marshalltown, and Sgt. Edgar Torres-Tovar, 25, of Des Moines. Both were members of the 1st Squadron,...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Races for Legislature will heat up in 2026
New Year’s Eve is still a few weeks off, but the 2026 race for the Iowa Statehouse is already well underway in the Des Moines metro. h And it seems like nearly every legislative seat in the metro will be up for grabs. Retirements, bids for higher...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
JoCo to reaffirm rights amid warrantless arrests by ICE
Johnson County will move forward with a “due process” resolution reaffirming the county’s position against warrantless arrests by federal officials in county facilities, encouraging workplace training and recommending that area businesses implement...
Read Full Story (Page 2)
Branstad honored with Iowa Award
Iowa elected officials, government leaders and other dignitaries praised former Gov. Terry Branstad’s “courage,” “grace” and “integrity” during a ceremony Dec. 11 at the Iowa Capitol honoring his decades of public service. Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
More cameras, but little regulation
The rapid growth of automated license plate readers in Iowa is sparking calls for broader state regulations of the technology, with civil liberties advocates pointing to a new report claiming the technology infringes on privacy rights. The ACLU of...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
STADIUM ISAGO AL
What one backer called “the last piece” of a long-unsolved puzzle has fallen into place as Des Moines City Council approved a $7 million tax increment financing deal for a pro soccer stadium on a remediated Superfund site adjacent to downtown Des...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
New ISU coach tips hat to predecessor
AMES – As the snow fell and the wind whipped, a small army descended upon the Ames Municipal Airport. Eight inches of snowfall would typically be more than enough to divert a plane south to Des Moines, which is equipped to handle winter weather the...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
School districts face soaring unpaid debts
Des Moines metro and Iowa school leaders say they’re racking up millions of dollars in unpaid school meal debts as more and more families struggle to meet household needs. Those education leaders have promised students won’t go hungry at school,...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
If it’s local you want, we’ve got it.
Our Sunday refresh offers more local news and sports, as well as “Weekend Exclusive” content to help you navigate your lives.
Read Full Story (Page 1)
WOW A Y
Sarah Bailey did not have a horse growing up. So, she rode her cow into town. She’d borrow the neighbors’ ponies until she got her first 4-H calf, riding down a hardtop road to the grain mill, stopping for peanuts, and talking to the farmers along the...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Burst of long-awaited projects getting off the ground City sets record for development in 2025
The city of Des Moines saw a record-breaking year for development in 2025, issuing $680 million in building permits, with some of the city’s long-awaited projects getting off the ground. The Des Moines Downtown Chamber of Commerce highlighted the...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Bondurant to be 3rd city to leave DART
Des Moines Area Regional Transit Authority commissioners readily approved a plan to overhaul central Iowa’s bus system, which includes fewer routes but more frequent service. But leaders were dismayed to learn another member community plans to...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
? Mall buyer ID’d, but big questions remain
New court documents identify the prospective buyer of the foreclosed Valley West Mall in West Des Moines as Valley West Redevelopment LLC. But who is behind the company and the specifics of the plans for the mall are not yet clear. Krista L. Freitag,...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
SNOWY START TO DECEMBER
It’s been a snowy start to the holiday season in Iowa. A winter storm formed over the Central Plains on Thanksgiving and moved northeast after the holiday. The wintry weather continued in Iowa on Monday and looks to stay around through the week. There...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
2026 results key for Vance’s future
WASHINGTON – Vice President JD Vance has a lot riding on the November 2026 midterm elections. He is seen as the front-runner to be the next Republican nominee for the White House, yet he faces the more immediate challenge of being one of his party’s...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
IEDA head: ‘Liz made the case’ for arena
Debi Durham was skeptical about a reworked plan to build a hockey arena at Merle Hay Mall. Heading into an early November meeting with the mall’s CEO, Liz Holland, Durham, the Iowa Economic Development Authority director, knew all about the project’s...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
YOU’RE A MEAN ONE ...
Above: The Grinch poses for photos with families on Nov. 21 before the Christmas tree lighting at Brenton Skating Plaza during the East Village Promenade in Des Moines. Right: Mayor Connie Boesen meets with the Grinch before the tree lighting.
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Grants from program support neighbors in need
Leigha Walker could’ve sketched where the paint was chipping in her elementary school’s hallways, the cracks and stains on its floor, with blueprint precision. Teachers, she says, didn’t know what to do with a student like her. ADHD. Autism. She...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
BUILT ON BREAD
Chances are when you sit down for Thanksgiving dinner, you will break some kind of bread. But not all bread is the same. For some, bread may be the most overlooked offering at the table. Here’s a story that reminds us it can be so much more: To...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Iowan, DIY scientist saved Olympian’s life
The woman staring back at Jill Viles from the blue light of her computer screen seems to be missing fat, making her muscles appear uncomfortably puffed, like legs stuffed into outgrown pants. And in this particular picture, taken after the woman...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Miller-Meeks defends her party’s priorities
KEOSAUQUA – Over heckling and shouting that drowned out many of her answers, Republican U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks defended her party’s priorities during a fiery town hall for southeastern Iowa’s 1st Congressional District. Miller-Meeks’...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Sand’s leap of faith to be put to the test
NEW HAMPTON – At every campaign stop, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Rob Sand asks the crowd to sing the opening verse of “America the Beautiful” — no matter if a few dozen people or a few hundred fill the room. Sand urges someone in the audience...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
No immunity for city in building collapse
The Iowa Supreme Court cleared the way for dozens of people affected by a 2023 fatal building collapse to continue their lawsuits against the City of Davenport. The May 2023 disaster saw a portion of a historic downtown building known as the Davenport...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
The plumbing problem
Apartments need more water than offices. Additional plumbing and water pumps have to be added throughout the tower.
Read Full Story (Page 1)
AC AND PAI
Iowa’s farm troubles are expected to continue next year, with agricultural income tumbling 24%, a new report shows. The steep drop would extend a three-year downturn for corn and soybean growers that’s rippled through the state’s economy, including...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Court orders benefits immediately, in full
The Trump administration must almost immediately provide full Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits to the 41.7 million Americans who rely on them, a federal judge said on Nov. 6. According to CNN, federal District Judge John McConnell...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Overwhelming win for DMPS project
Moulton Elementary Principal Eddie McCulley didn’t plan to spend election night at a watch party as Des Moines voters decided that fate of a $265 million bond that would help rebuild his aging school. Home seemed like a better spot to anxiously wait...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Airport upgrade plan has final OK
The Des Moines International Airport is expected to double its capacity by 2029 with the completion of its final phase of terminal construction. With the latest approval to build four new gates, the airport’s Lift DSM project is on track to conclude...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Track’s success banks on innovation, growth
A decade ago, the man who has led the country’s only nonprofit racetrack and casino for nearly 20 years speculated that horse racing in Iowa might go the way of the dogs. Racing losses at Prairie Meadows Racetrack and Casino in Altoona exceeded $30...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Book bans tested in Iowa classrooms
Twenty-one books. Two pieces of curriculum. One movie. h An exclusive Des Moines Register survey of Iowa’s 325 public schools found two-dozen documented challenges for education materials since the passage of Senate File 496, a sweeping law that...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Iowa State Fair now auctioning Sky Gliders, livestock pens, more
Want to own a piece of the Iowa State Fair? Say, one of the colorful Sky Gliders that have had fairgoers soaring through the air for more than 50 years? Now you can. The Iowa State Fair recently announced an auction of more than 700 items through...
Read Full Story (Page 2)
Iowans face surge in health coverage costs
Abbey Paxton has spent hours sitting with financial advisers in recent months, puzzling over how to fit skyrocketing health insurance premiums into her family’s 2026 budget. Paxton, a 37-year-old mother of two who owns a bookstore in Des Moines, said...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
‘Are we going to invest in our kids?’
With cans of spray paint, masking tape and a ladder balanced precariously in stairwells, Moulton Elementary Principal Eddie McCulley has spent many school breaks over the last nine years brightening the school’s halls and walls with rainbows and...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
SNAP DECISIONS
The last few days have been tough on Jill Bensley. The 59-year-old Des Moines resident who relies on food assistance benefits was crushed by the weight of the news that she and hundreds of thousands of Iowans may go without money from the Supplemental...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
THE NEXT POWER ENERATIO
NextEra Energy says Google has signed a 25year agreement to buy power from Iowa’s only nuclear energy plant, which the Florida-based utility is seeking to restart in eastern Iowa. NextEra says the Duane Arnold plant in Palo near Cedar Rapids should be...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
SNAP aid for 42M Americans at risk
The 42 million Americans who rely on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program will go without their benefits come Nov. 1 because of the ongoing federal government shutdown, according to a new message from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. SNAP,...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
‘Less help for hunger’
CRESTON – The line outside the Creston Area Food Bank was already about six people deep an hour before the pantry was scheduled to open. As it inched along, a few seniors made their way into the crowded waiting room, where Jodi Rushing, the pantry’s...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Is it deer season? A look at Iowa DNR’s hunting season dates
As the temperatures begin to fall, hunters are starting to get back into the swing of things as deer hunting season approaches. The Iowa Department of Natural Resources has announced time frames for deer hunting seasons based on specific age ranges...
Read Full Story (Page 2)
‘I FOLLOWED MY HEART AND MY BELIEF’
Mariangela Hungria received the $500,000 World Food Prize on Thursday, Oct. 23, at a Community Choice Event Center ceremony in Des Moines. The pioneering Brazilian microbiologist whose work helps farmers replace chemicals with less expensive, more...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Contempt ruling roils inmate evals
It started as a routine court proceeding. A young man was accused of possessing marijuana and a judge needed to know if he had a drug problem. The court ordered Cody Nichols of Sheldon, facing several misdemeanor charges, to obtain a substance abuse...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Andrés urges revival of USAID
Speaking in Des Moines, celebrity chef José Andrés, whose nonprofit World Central Kitchen is providing millions of meals in war-ravaged areas like Ukraine and Gaza, urged President Donald Trump to reconsider killing USAID and billions of dollars in...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Iowa DOGE task force issues its final report
The Iowa DOGE task force Gov. Kim Reynolds appointed unveiled its report of ways to potentially cut state and local government and increase efficiency, greasing the wheel to slash property taxes. The government task force unveiled its final report...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Kinze founder selling 125 antique tractors
It started with the chance rediscovery of his father’s old tractor and continued until it sprawled five massive sheds. Now Jon Kinzenbaw, the eastern Iowa farm entrepreneur who founded Kinze Manufacturing 60 years ago, is preparing to sell about 125...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
‘Everything is on the table’
Gov. Kim Reynolds and top GOP state lawmakers handling tax policy say “everything is on the table” as they try again to draft legislation overhauling Iowa’s property tax system. After letting lawmakers “take the lead” on legislative proposals intended...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
A drop in formal book challenges masks ongoing disputes over race, gender, identity and what Iowa’s students should read If it’s local news you want, we’ve got it.
Our Sunday refresh offers more local news and sports to help you navigate your lives. So enjoy stories that will inspire, educate, inform and entertain you.
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Worries grow about federal pay, benefits
WASHINGTON − The government shutdown entered Day 17 on Oct. 17 with no end in sight, as concerns grow about federal workers, including the military, missing paychecks and as benefits such as food assistance run out. The Pentagon shifted funding to...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
GROWING CHANGE
The Greater Des Moines Botanical Garden has unveiled two renovated spaces, both products of a $9 million fundraising campaign. The longtime Gardeners Show House and what’s now called Evergreen Gallery recently reopened to the public ahead of the...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Is 1 million in sight for Des Moines metro?
At the Greater Des Moines Partnership’s Regional Summit in September, CEO Tiffany Tauscheck pointed to a 10county region of central Iowa she said has a population of about 940,000 people, with an increase to 1 million in sight. “Getting to that 1...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
ENERGY FIELD
The fences are finally down, and MidAmerican Energy’s new Two Rivers Park on the Des Moines riverfront is officially open. The $15.5 million, 9-acre park, occupying the former home of MidAmerican’s Two Rivers Service Center, anchors the city’s new...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
DID THEY KNOW?
Two weeks after the arrest of former Superintendent Ian Roberts, Des Moines School Board members and district officials have not said whether they knew Roberts lied on his resume before they hired him. Roberts claimed in his 2023 application that he...
Read Full Story (Page 1)